Device for mounting electric connectors for vehicles

ABSTRACT

An electrical connector mounting device, comprising a connector box ( 1 ) with cavities ( 2 ) for housing electrical connectors ( 3 ) coupled on a support ( 4 ) fixed to the vehicle, which includes cavities ( 5 ) that coincide with the cavities ( 2 ). The box ( 1 ) incorporates screws ( 7 ) arranged in the box ( 1 ). It includes means for detecting the coupling of the connector ( 3 ) in the box ( 1 ) which consist of a casing ( 9 ) which surrounds the screw ( 7 ) and slides with respect to the same when it is turned, so that its upper end ( 17 ) projects from the box ( 1 ), indicating that the connector ( 3 ) has been coupled in the box ( 1 ).

This application is a 371 of PCT/ES00/00319 filed Aug. 10, 2000. Thedisclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

The present Patent of Invention application consists, as its titleindicates, of a “AN ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR MOUNTING DEVICE FOR VEHICLES”,whose new characteristics of construction, shape and design fulfil thefunction for which it has specifically been designed, with maximumsafety and effectiveness, and which provides many advantages, asdescribed in the present specification.

In the field of connections for the different electrical devices, forexample, of a car, mounting the connectors which form part of theelectrical system of a vehicle in a connector box fixed to the chassisof the same is known.

The connectors are mounted one by one in the connector box and then thebox is fixed to the vehicle's chassis. The main drawback arising fromthe use of said system of mounting the electrical connectors in vehiclesis that the installation space of the connector box is usually small.Apart from the little space available, the operator who has to installthe connector box finds that handling the same is complicated as thegreat number of connectors makes mounting and fixing of the sameenormously difficult.

The U.S. Pat. No. 5,836,787, “Connector Assembly with Connector HousingRetaining Structure”, applied for by Shinji Kodama, describes aconnector housing attached to an electrical instrument, and a secondconnector housing disposed on a part of a panel wall, being bothconnector housings connected together by screw joining means. When theconnectors connect together, the second connector housing can part fromthe panel wall toward the first connector housing and when theconnectors separate from each other, the second connector housing can beprovisionally retained on the panel wall by the provisionally retainingmeans.

The present device modifies the previous state of the art mentionedabove and includes, among other elements, means for detecting thecoupling of each connector in the connector box, which allows theoperator to be notified that the connectors are connected in the box, orto determine whether there is any connector which has not been correctlycoupled in the connector box

The mounting device of the invention consists in a support which isadequately fixed to the vehicle's chassis and to which said connectorbox is coupled. This support is provided with cavities inside, whichcoincide with the cavities of the connector box, which are made forplacing said electrical connectors. Prior placing of the connectors inthese cavities of said support allows them to be convenientlydistributed in correspondence with the cavities of the connector box.

Moreover, the connector box is advantageously provided with couplingmeans of the connectors in the connector box which allow theseconnectors to be extracted from the cavities of the support when theconnector box is coupled to the support.

It should be emphasised that the arrangement of this support fixed tothe vehicle is advantageous for the objects of the invention since, whenthe connector box is installed in the vehicle, the connectors havepreviously been adequately placed and distributed in the support readyfor connection. The arrangement of the connectors in the support iseasy, since they are arranged on top of the support. Therefore, mountingis very simple and enables costs to be reduced with respect to otherknown types of mounting for connectors.

In accordance with the invention, said coupling means of the connectorsin the connector box consist of at least one screw provided in theconnector box, which can be introduced by threading into an orifice ofthe connector. Turning said screw, extracts the connector from thecavity of the support and couples it with the connector box.

Once the support is fixed, the connector box is arranged on the same andsaid screws are turned, which forces the connectors to couple in thecorresponding cavity of the connector box. Thus, it may be observed thatinstallation of the box is very simple, since it is not necessary tohandle it because the connectors are already correctly placed in theirdefinitive mounting positions ready for connection.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention, the device alsoincludes means for detecting the coupling of each connector in theconnector box, which allows the operator to be notified that theconnectors are connected in the box, or to determine whether there isany connector which has not been correctly coupled in the connector box.Said means for detecting the coupling of each connector in the connectorbox consist of a casing mounted around the outside of the screw of thecoupling means described above. This casing can slide axially withrespect to said screw in such a way that, when the screw is introducedinto the orifice of the connector, said casing is forced to slideupwards in such a way that its upper end projects from the connectorbox, indicating to the operator that the connector has been coupled.

Preferably, the cavities of the support are provided with an upper rimwhich projects towards the inside of the cavity, which serves to preventvertical movement of the connector when the box is not coupled in thesupport. This rim has a surface which is inclined outwards which servesto facilitate introduction of the connector. Moreover, each connector isprovided with side tongues whose ends are arrow-shaped which coupleunder the upper rim of each cavity of the support. Said tongues consistof a rib inclined inwards which makes the tongue bend inwards when theinner wall of the cavity of the connector box makes contact with therib. This allows the connector to be extracted from the cavity of thesupport and coupled to the connector box, as described above.

The features and advantages of the electrical connector mounting devicefor vehicles which is the object of the present invention, will be clearfrom the detailed description of a preferred embodiment of the samewhich will be given, from here on, by way of non-restrictive example.Said description refers to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a partial cross-sectioned elevation view of the electricalconnector mounting device for vehicles of the invention, in which theconnector box separated from the support is represented.

FIG. 2 is a partial cross-sectioned elevation view of the device of theinvention, in which the connector box is represented partially coupledto the support.

FIG. 3 is a partial cross-sectioned elevation view of the device of theinvention, which shows the connector box completely coupled to thesupport, and in which the connector is shown perfectly connected in theconnector box.

FIG. 4 is an enlarged partial view in accordance with the connectormounting device arranged in the position represented in FIG. 1.

The elements described in the figures correspond to (1) connector box,(2) cavities of the connector box, (3) electrical connector, (4)support, (5) cavities of the support, (6) coupling means, (7) screw, (8)connector orifice, (9) casing, (9 a) upper widened area of the casing,(9 b) inner projections of the connector box, (10) upper rim of thesupport cavities, (11) inclined surface of the rim, (12) side tongues,(13) tongue ends, (14) tongue ribs, (15) walls of the cavities of thebox, (16) lower part of the casing, (17) upper end of the casing and(18) upper part of the connector box.

With reference to FIGS. 1 to 3, the electrical connector mounting devicefor vehicles is made up of a connector box (1) provided with cavities(2) to house electrical connectors (3) inside, and a support (4) fixedto the chassis of the vehicle upon which the connector box (1) iscoupled. The support (4) is provided with cavities (5) inside, whichcoincide with the cavities (2) of the connector box (1) mentioned above.These cavities (5) are also adapted to house the electrical connector(3), as may clearly be observed in FIG. 1.

The support (4) includes coupling means (6) of each connector (3) in theconnector box (1) which, in the embodiment of the drawings, consists ofa series of screws (7) of which, for reasons of clarity, only one isrepresented in the drawings. The screw (7) is provided in the connectorbox (1) and may be threaded into an orifice (8) of the connector (3) tocause the connector (3) to be extracted, as we will specify below.

The device of the invention is also equipped with means to detect thecoupling of each connector (3) in the connector box (1), which consistof a casing (9) mounted around the outside of the screw (7) in such away that it may slide axially with respect to the same.

It may be observed in the drawings that the casing has a widened upperarea (9 a) which serves as a check against inner projections (9 b) ofthe box (1) to limit the path of the casing (9). Thus, in FIGS. 1 and 2,the lower part of said widened area (9 a) is in contact with the innerprojections (9 b) as the connector (3) is not coupled in the box (1).

As may be observed in the drawings, the cavities (5) of the support (4)have an upper rim (10) which projects towards the inside of the cavity(5), which may be observed in FIG. 4. This rim (10) serves to preventvertical movement of the connector (3) when the box (1) is not coupledin the support (4). With reference again to FIG. 4, the rim (10) has asurface (11) inclined outwards which serves to facilitate introductionof the connector (3). In this sense, each connector (3) is provided withside tongues (12) whose ends (13) are arrow-shaped and which coupleunder the upper rim (10) of each cavity (5) of the support (4) as shownin FIG. 4, in which it may also be observed that said tongues (12) areprovided with a rib (14) inclined inwards which causes the tongue (12)to bend inwards (see the position in FIG. 2) in order to make itpossible to extract the connector (3) from the cavity (5) of the support(4).

As the connector box (1) descends upon the support (4), the inner walls(16) of the cavity (2) of said box (1) slide over the inclined surfaceof the rib (14) causing the tongue (12) to bend inwards (FIG. 2), thusallowing the connector (3) to be extracted from the cavity (5) of thesupport (4).

The connectors (3) are mounted on the device of the invention in thefollowing way:

Firstly, the support (4) is fixed to the vehicle's chassis and then theelectrical connectors (3) are placed in the corresponding cavities (5)of the support (4), as shown in FIG. 1, in such a way that the ends (13)of the tongues (12) are perfectly introduced under the upper rim (10) ofthe cavity (5).

Next, the connector box (1) is placed upon the support (FIG. 1) andcoupled with the same, as shown in FIG. 2, so that the cavities (2, 5)coincide perfectly.

As the connector box (1) descends upon the support (4), the inner walls(15) of the cavity (2) of said box (1) slide over the inclined surfaceof the rib (14) causing the tongue (12) to bend inwards (FIG. 2), thusallowing the connector (3) to be extracted from the cavity (5) of thesupport (4).

Next, the screw (7) is turned in the orifice (9) of the connector (3) sothat the connector (3) leaves the cavity (5), ascends towards the cavity(2) and couples correctly in the connector box (1), as illustrated inFIG. 3.

As the electrical connector (3) moves upwards to couple in the connectorbox (1), it pushes the casing (9) by its lower part (16). In theconnection position, which is represented in FIG. 3, in which theconnector (3) is completely coupled in the connector box (1), housed inthe cavity (2), the upper end (17) of the casing (9) slightly projectsfrom the upper part (18) of the box (1) where the screw (7) is housed.It is intended that the casing (9) be made of plastic material and givena striking colour (for example, red) so that said projecting upper end(17) of the same may easily be perceived by the operator who is mountingthe connectors (3) with the mounting device which is the object of thepresent invention.

When the end (17) of the casing (9) projects from the upper part (18) ofthe box (1), the operator can be sure that the connector (3) isperfectly connected in said box (1). Therefore, the device of theinvention ensures the connection between the connectors (3) and theconnector box (1) thanks to the elements described above.

Having sufficiently described what the present invention consists of,with reference to the attached drawings, it will be understood that anymodification of detail considered convenient can be introduced into thesame, provided that the essential nature of the invention is notaltered, which is summarised in the following ClAIMS.

What is claimed is:
 1. “AN ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR MOUNTING DEVICE FORVEHICLES”, which consists of a connector box (1) provided with aplurality of cavities (2) for housing electrical connectors (3) inside,comprising a support (4) fixed to the chassis of a vehicle on which theconnector box (1) is coupled; said support (4) being provided insidewith cavities (5) which coincide with the cavities (2) of the connectorbox (1), which are made for placing said electrical connectors (3) insuch a way that they are distributed in correspondence with the cavities(2) of the connector box (1); said connector box (1) is provided withone screw (7) arranged in the box (1) for threading into an orifice (8)of the connector (3) so that when the screw (7) is turned, the connector(3) is extracted from the cavity (5) of the support (4) and coupled inthe connector box (1) of the connectors (3), when the box (1) is coupledin the support (4) characterised in that it includes means for detectingthe coupling of each connector (3) in the connector box (1), comprisingsaid means a casing (9) mounted around the outside of the screw (7) ofthe coupling means (6), which can slide axially with respect to saidscrew (7) in such a way that, when the screw (7) is introduced into theorifice (8) of the connector (3), said casing (9) is forced to slideaxially upwards and its upper end (17) projects from the connector box(1), indicating that the connector (3) has been coupled in the box (1).2. “AN ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR MOUNTING DEVICE FOR VEHICLES” in accordancewith claim 1, characterised in that the cavities (5) of the support (4)are provided with an upper rim (10) which projects towards the inside ofthe cavity (5) in order to prevent vertical movement of the connector(3) when the box (1) is not coupled in the support (4); said rim (10)having a surface inclined (11) outwards which serves to facilitateintroduction of the connector (3).
 3. “AN ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR MOUNTINGDEVICE FOR VEHICLES” in accordance with claim 1, characterised in thateach connector (3) is provided with side tongues (12) whose ends (13)are arrow-shaped for coupling under the upper rim (10) of each cavity(5) of the support (4); said tongues (12) comprising a rib (14) inclinedinwards which causes the tongue (12) to bend inwards when the innerwalls (15) of the cavity (2) of the connector box (1) make contact withsaid rib (14), thus allowing the connector (3) to be extracted from thecavity (5) of the support (4) and coupled to the connector box (1). 4.“AN ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR MOUNTING DEVICE FOR VEHICLES” in accordancewith claim 2, characterised in that each connector (3) is provided withside tongues (12) whose ends (13) are arrow-shaped for coupling underthe upper rim (10) of each cavity (5) of the support (4); said tongues(12) comprising a rib (14) inclined inwards which causes the tongue (12)to bend inwards when the inner walls (15) of the cavity (2) of theconnector box (1) make contact with said rib (14), thus allowing theconnector (3) to be extracted from the cavity (5) of the support (4) andcoupled to the connector box (1).